Page 44 of Knotting else Matters

The warm, polished glow of the mansion’s main hall washed over me, the soft, golden light spilling across the marble floors. I headed down the grand staircase, the faint murmur of voices drifting up to meet me.

In the sitting room, Adrian stood with his parents and Lena. His parents were a picture of quiet elegance—his father, tall and silver-haired, his mother, graceful and poised, her warm smile a comforting contrast to Lena’s sharp, almost predatory gaze.

Adrian’s dark eyes met mine as I approached, and I didn’t waste a second, pulling out my phone and showing him the address Sophie had sent.

“Here. This is the place.”

He leaned in, studying the screen, his expression cool, focused. “It’s about a four-hour drive, maybe more depending on the traffic.”

“Fine. If we leave early, we can be back before nightfall.”

He gave a sharp, approving nod, already pulling out his phone, stepping toward the glass doors that led out to the garden. “I’ll make some calls, get the pickup ready.”

“Of course you will, Alpha,” I muttered under my breath, a faint, exasperated smile tugging at my lips.

But the moment he disappeared outside, a chill slithered over me, and I felt a light, perfectly manicured hand close around my arm.

“Olivia,” Lena’s voice was a soft, almost sweet whisper, a serpent wrapped in silk. “Might I have a word?”

I forced a smile, even though every instinct told me to pull away. “Sure.”

She led me just a few steps away, her fingers never quite letting go of my arm, her smile soft, her gaze sharp as a blade.

“I know what’s going on,” she murmured, her voice dripping with a quiet, smug certainty.

I forced a smile, the kind that felt like it might crack at any second. “I’m not sure what you’re talking about, Lena.”

“Oh, please.” Her fingers tightened around my arm, her smile sharpening, her voice a low, venomous purr. “Don’t play dumb with me. You smelled money and comfort the second you got here. Your sister is marrying into one of the wealthiest families in the pack, and suddenly, here you are—lurking around like a shadow, trying to carve out a slice of her happiness for yourself.”

“What?” I laughed, a brittle, sharp sound. “That’s ridiculous. I’m here because—”

“Because you saw an opportunity.” Her voice cut over mine, relentless, her perfectly manicured nails pressing just a little too hard against my skin. “Poor, pathetic Olivia, the family disappointment, the one who ran away and married a human—oh, how tragic. But now you’re back, and you see a chance to crawl your way into luxury. And you’ve latched onto Adrian like a parasite.”

My stomach twisted, my pulse pounding in my ears. “Lena, I swear to gods—”

“Don’t swear at me, child.” Her smile never wavered, but the sweetness in her voice was gone, replaced by something dark, something cruel. “I see you. Clinging to Sophie’s new world, batting your eyes at an Alpha like you have any right—”

“Shut the fuck up!” The words tore out of me, louder, sharper than I meant, but I couldn’t stop. “I am so sick of your lectures, your insults, your constant little jabs. I’ve been hearing what a disappointment I am my entire life—how I’m a waste, a failure, a Zeta who should have just stayed gone!”

Her smile faltered, a flicker of something dark and satisfied in her eyes. “Finally, some honesty. And here I thought you’d never admit it.”

“Enough.”

Adrian’s voice cut through the room like a blade, sharp, cold, and laced with a calm that was somehow more terrifying than any shout.

I turned, and there he was—tall, composed, but his dark eyes blazed with a quiet, dangerous light. A predator barely held in check.

“Both of you,” he continued, his voice steady but carrying a weight that seemed to press down on the room. “Stop it.”

Lena straightened, but she didn’t release my arm, her gaze still locked on mine, a faint, triumphant smirk tugging at her lips.

“If you don’t shut your mouth and disrespect her like that again,” he murmured, his voice so calm, so measured, it sent a chill racing down my spine, “I will banish you from my pack.”

My breath caught, a sharp, shocked gasp slipping from me, and I turned to him, trying to speak, trying to defend myself, trying to—

“I wasn’t talking to you.” His voice was still calm, still sharp as a blade, but his gaze didn’t leave Lena.

Her hand finally fell away from my arm, her eyes wide, the faintest tremor in her perfect, poised frame. “Adrian, please—”

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